1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to a clamping strap and more particularly to a clamping strap that is adjustable and has particular application in the field of woodworking and cabinet making.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the broad field of wood working there are countless times in the process of manufacture that products are clamped in position for numerous reasons such as to allow glue to dry for example. The clamp is almost as old as the mallet, saw and wood chisel and various sizes, shapes and models have been tried over the years. One persistent difficulty with the prior art clamps is the ability to micro-adjust the pressure on the work thus assuring good contact between the pieces being joined. If insufficient pressure is applied the wood will lack the structural integrity of fine woodwork and if excessive pressure is applied the glue will be forced out of the joint and look poorly and also lack soundness of structure.
A number of U.S. Patents have been granted for inventions relating to clamping straps and the following are those known to Applicant. U.S. Pat. No. 3,595,559 issued Jul. 27, 1971 to Gettinger for an Adjustable Holding Device to hold automobile bumpers while work is being performed on them. U.S. Pat. No. 3,893,210 issued Jul. 8, 1975 to Hildebrant for a strap clamp assembly adapted for uses such as fastening loads to automobiles. The U.S. Patent No. 4,718,148 to McKernon et al. issued Jan. 12, 1988 is another clamping means for a strap, adapted to be located between a strap storage location and a strap utilization location. The Rogers U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,789 issued Nov. 10, 1992 is a universal clamping device for use in woodworking or other fabricating projects and lacks the micro-adjust feature of this invention. A U.S. Pat. No. Des. 342,595 has been issued to Day for an adjustable strap that appears to function well with a sport hat band. U.S. Patent No. 5,420,236 issued Aug. 31, 1993 to Mierau discloses a strap clamp for securing logs that are to enter a particular heavy duty wood working machine.
It is easily seen that clamps of the prior art fail to provide fine adjustment and that there exists a need for just such a device as disclosed and claimed herein.